Renowned Kenyan lawyer Ahmednasir Abdullahi has opined that the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) filed by activists and two county governments could be stifled by quorum issues at the Supreme Court.
In a tweet on Wednesday, Ahmednasir argued that with Chief Justice David Maraga exiting in January 2021, the court will be left with 5 judges since retired Justice Jackton Ojwang was not replaced.
In view of the above, Ahmednasir claimed that judges who appear to lean towards the government will take advantage of the same and miss court citing Covid-19 related illness.
“Judge Ojwang retired from the Supreme Court months ago. No replacement. CJ Maraga leaves in few days. Only 5 left. Advisory opinions on BBI will face huge quorum problems as pro-government judges give endless excuses of being sick with Covid-19!” he tweeted.
Meanwhile, Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana has moved to the Supreme Court seeking an advisory opinion on BBI.
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In his application, Governor Kibwana wants the Supreme Court to pronounce itself on whether a proposed amendment to the Constitution should only be limited to one issue and whether national or county governments or state and public officers can promote constitutional amendment through a popular initiative.
The Nandi and Kericho County assemblies have also filed an advisory opinion at the Supreme Court seeking to establish how they should handle the BBI document considering that the Principals have not allowed them to amend the document.
The county assemblies also want to know how feedback from public participation will be dealt with in the BBI document.
